


Look No Further

by thewayofthetrashcompactor (BriarLily)



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Craigslist, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Family Drama, Thanksgiving, The most wonderful time of the year, fa la la la la, la la la la, tis the season for fake dating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-18
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2019-02-03 23:18:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12758223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BriarLily/pseuds/thewayofthetrashcompactor
Summary: Rey's thrilled that Finn and Rose are dating and that they're going out to California to spend Thanksgiving with Rose's family. Really. But being alone again for the holiday is bringing up a lot more insecurities than she wants to think about, which leads to the internet and alcohol and poor decisions all around.And somehow a late-night Craigslist ad ends up with her agreeing to crash some asshole's family dinner. At the very least, she's curious what kind of people name their son "Kylo Ren" anyway.





	1. Alcohol and feelings do not mix

Rey flopped back onto her bed, staring up at the dark ceiling. In the room next door, she could hear Finn settling down for the night as well. His mattress creaked as he lay down and shifted, then quiet fell in the small apartment. Rey sighed.

If she’d thought about it, it was not at all unexpected that Rose’s parents would want to meet her boyfriend of over a year and invite him out to California with them for Thanksgiving. It just hadn’t occurred to her until Finn had tentatively brought it up over pizza that she would more than likely be spending Thanksgiving on campus alone.

It wasn’t so bad staying at school over breaks with Finn there. The campus always fell eerily silent once classes were out, but between Finn and studying and her job, she could usually keep busy. Now Finn was flying off with Rose, the university had cut all student positions in the works office after the state budget had gone through, she still hadn’t heard back from any stores about seasonal work before she could start a new work-study position in the spring, and not even she could spread reading textbooks out across the entire break.

Tears welled in her eyes, and she wiped them away angrily. She had managed on her own plenty of times before. Missing her and Finn’s traditional Thanksgiving junk food and beer wasn’t the end of the world.

She sighed and turned over restlessly, then got up. She walked back out to the kitchen, quietly, so she wouldn’t disturb Finn, and opened the fridge. She grabbed one of the cheap beers from the bottom shelf, hesitated, then grabbed two more. She carried them back to her room and threw herself back onto her bed, opening one beer and setting the other two aside.

She pulled her laptop out from under a blanket and opened it. The cool glow of the screen reflected off the can in her hand as she flipped through her tabs for something to distract herself. She skipped Facebook quickly; she didn’t need to see any more of other people’s lives compared to hers tonight. She settled instead on an endless slideshow of baby animal pictures.

Somehow, she found herself crying a while later looking at a photo of impossibly tiny kittens. Sniffling and wiping her eyes, she looked at her second beer suspiciously. She looked at the cats again. A pet would at least stay with her. She wouldn’t have to worry about a cat going and finding a better owner and leaving her.

She almost opened the ASPCA page to look at look at cats at the local shelter, but realized what she was doing and stopped herself just in time. Instead, she flipped over to even more mindless pages, reading about weirdest unexplained sightings and the worst craigslist ads ever posted. Eventually, the words blurred together and she stared at the screen.

What was wrong with her? Her parents, foster parents, friends...it never lasted. She chuckled wetly. What _wasn’t_ wrong with her? She was laying on her bed on a Friday night drinking on her own and whining about herself. She wouldn’t want to spend time with herself if she didn’t have to.

Maybe Poe was right, she should try an app or something to get out and meet people. She couldn’t rely on Finn forever; it wasn’t fair to him. She snorted, thinking how that profile would go. “Overworked engineering student who spends free time feeling sorry for herself looking for…” Something. With a self-deprecating grin, she pulled her laptop closer, opened the third beer, and began typing.

-

She woke the next morning with a pounding head and grimaced. Fumbling around on her bedside table, she found the water bottle she’d left there, and drank gratefully. If she was going to make poor decisions at night, the least she could do was help future-her deal with them. She downed the bottle and dragged her fingers through her hair, feeling vaguely more presentable. Enough to leave her room at least.

She stumbled out, rubbing her forehead. Finn was already on the couch, his homework spread around him. He looked up when she entered, brow creased in concern. “You okay?” he asked.

She nodded, feeling oddly guilty. “Yeah.” She went to the kitchen and poured herself more water.

Finn set his laptop down on the table, and Rey’s stomach turned. “You know, I’ll always be here for you, right? And Rose says her parents don’t mind if you came too, we could get together enough for another plane ticket - “

Rey shook her head. “Finn, it’s fine. It’s only a few days, and they want to meet you, not me.” She paused. “And thank you,” she mumbled, looking down.

He smiled. “Any time, peanut.” She smiled back.

Turning away, she grabbed a box of cereal from the cabinet and took a handful. “So what are you doing today? All homework?”

Finn grimaced. “Yeah, most of the day probably. Got to finish putting together this research paper for Monday. Have all the research, it’s just…” He waved his hand at his laptop. “The writing.” Rey made a face in sympathy. “You?”

She shrugged. “Some, but not that bad. Mostly a bunch of problems for dynamics, and you never know how long those are going to take. I need to get out of the apartment though, was thinking of going to the library.”

“Sounds great,” Finn said, closing his laptop. “I need a break and some air.”

-

After grabbing another handful of cereal, Rey went back to her room to get dressed and grab her stuff. As she took her sweatshirt from the corner of her bed, her laptop peeked out at her from under her covers.

With a flash of memory, she quickly opened it, scanning the open windows for where she wrote down the nonsense she’d come up with in the middle of the night. She found it in a sticky note, and, keeping herself from reading the contents, deleted the note for good. She sighed in relief. She should know better than to let herself wallow.

She closed the laptop again and slid it into her backpack, along with her charger, books, and notes. She swung it onto her back, and walked back out to the main room.

“Ready,” she told Finn brightly, grabbing her keys. He nodded and smiled, and they headed out together.

-

In a closed and forgotten tab, a Craigslist ad waited for a response:

“Single on Thanksgiving? Want to disappoint your family?

Look no further! Bring me to your fancy dinner, and your family will stop asking you to find a girlfriend once and for all.

Qualifications:

-unemployed college student  
-guaranteed worst table manners you’ve ever seen, can provide references  
-Minimal knowledge of politics, but will still argue about it  
-No knowledge of sports besides a strong hatred for football  
-No sense of fashion or style, mostly stained t-shirts and jeans

Must cover any transportation costs yourself

Do NOT contact this seller with other offers”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on [this post](http://thewayofthetrashcompactor.tumblr.com/post/166676689453/westerosbartender-dragonageinquisitionart) that makes the rounds every year.
> 
> Would really appreciate feedback on this! It's not my usual thing, and I'm not sure about it. I have five chapters written so far, and they get longer as they go. Will probably post the first few this weekend, and then a couple more during the week.


	2. Morning-after consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your encouragement on the first chapter! Hearing that people like what I'm posting keeps me writing. Have another (short) chapter!

The beginning of November brought with it a new wave of tests and projects, professors desperate to cram in everything they could. Rey spent days on end holed up in the library or her room to get the worst of the projects done, only leaving to go to classes or meet with group members. She avoided thinking of the upcoming holidays much more easily when overwhelmed with classwork. Enough piled up for her to almost feel grateful that she wasn’t also working.

The email arrived during her fluids class, and she saw it when she pulled out her phone as she filed from the warm building with the rest of the students into the chilly fall air. She scrolled past the constant reminders for student clubs and volunteering, then paused when her eyes landed on something different. She’d made a Craigslist account last year to get furniture for the apartment, but hadn’t used it recently, and definitely not for anything that should have the subject: “Response to your posting: Single on Thanks…” With a growing sense of foreboding, she opened the email.

She scanned the contents, eyes growing wider as she went. When she was finished, she stood gaping in the middle of the sidewalk, until someone bumped into her. Still in a daze, she moved to the side and collapsed on a wall surrounding a flower bed. Slowly, trying to process the words, she read the email again:

“Hello ScavengerRey!

On 10/21 at 2:47 am, you posted:

Single on Thanksgiving? Want to disappoint your family?

Look no further! Bring me to your fancy dinner, and your family will stop asking you to find a girlfriend once and for all.

Qualifications:...

(Click for full listing)”

On 11/9 at 4:13 am, DarkVader replied:

“If you’re serious, I’m interested. Parents live in Virginia outside of DC, would drive you down and back. Email me at kren@cu.edu to work something out.”

With face scrunched in anticipation, she tapped on the link to the posting. She closed it as soon as she read it, face flaming. Setting her phone down, she dragged her hand over her face. Drunk texting was one thing, and something she’d always managed to steer clear of. But this -

She opened the email again and reread it. For all the ridiculousness of her post, K. Ren actually sounded like he could be serious. She snorted. Probably some rich kid whose parents wouldn’t buy him another car. She slipped her phone back into her pocket, deciding to ignore him, then a few seconds later, took it back out. She’d already completely embarrassed herself, responding to this asshole couldn’t dig her any deeper.

Anger rose up in her as she began typing, thinking of the holidays she’d longed for as she grew up.

“To: kren@cu.edu  
From: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
Subject: Thanksgiving

Got your response to my post. Your parents want you home for Thanksgiving and you can’t just suck it up and be nice for one day? Thought the point of the holiday was to be thankful for what you have.

~Rey”

Finger shaking, she pressed send before she thought better and stopped herself. Shoving her phone firmly away, she walked back to the apartment.

She barely made it through the door before her phone buzzed again. She pulled it out, trying to pretend she wasn’t nervous, and tapped the notification for the new email.

“To: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
From: kren@cu.edu  
Subject: RE: Thanksgiving

You’re the one who offered. If you weren’t serious, you could have just said so. Didn’t think I needed to share my entire family background to some stranger on Craigslist.

I’m still interested, if you want. I’ll pay $100.

Kylo Ren  
PhD candidate  
History Department, College of Arts and Sciences”

Her fingers were poised to send a scathing reply when she hesitated. A hundred bucks wasn’t much, but it was enough for groceries, and she and Finn were running low as the semester wore on. The guy might be an asshole, but groceries and a free meal were a lot to pass up. Eyes glued to her phone, she fell back onto the couch and replied.

“To: kren@cu.edu  
From: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
Subject: RE: RE: Thanksgiving

You’re right, I don’t need to know. I’ll do it for $150, and I want to meet before then.

~Rey”

As soon as she sent it, Finn’s key rattled in the door, and she hid her phone in her pocket guiltily. She smiled at him as he walked in.

“You’re back early.”

“Exam ended up being really easy! We all finished early, even after I rechecked everything!” he said excitedly.

“Awesome!” His excitement made it easy to push Kylo Ren from her mind.

“If you don’t have anything due tomorrow, I thought we could take a night off tonight?” he asked, flopping down on the couch next to her. “Binge on Netflix, or something?”

She grinned. “Sounds great.”


	3. Mistakes, in person

She woke up late the next morning, after staying up far too late with Finn, and barely made it to her class on time. She saw the notification for Kylo’s email but didn’t open it, and it hung over her until her break, when she finally had a chance to read it.

“To: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
From: kren@cu.edu  
Subject: RE: Thanksgiving

$150 then. And that’s reasonable, however I am very busy before the break. If you’re free, I’m available at 4 this afternoon. Otherwise, I might have some time the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Let me know.

Kylo Ren   
PhD candidate  
History Department, College of Arts and Sciences”

Rey glanced at the time. She had classes in the afternoon, but would be done by three. Taking a deep breath, she replied.

“To: kren@cu.edu  
From: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
Subject: RE: Thanksgiving

I can do that. Starbucks?

~Rey”

It took longer for Kylo to reply this time, likely because he had his own classes. His brief reply was waiting for her when she got out in the afternoon:

“To: sunshinerey@gmail.com  
From: kren@cu.edu

Subject: RE: Thanksgiving

Fine.

Kylo Ren   
PhD candidate   
History Department, College of Arts and Sciences”

She rolled her eyes at the brusque answer. Probably too pedestrian for him. She felt a little guilty at assuming so much about him, but he was the one hiring her to ruin his family Thanksgiving.

She got to Starbucks early and sat in the corner with her laptop, her coffee set carefully to the side. From 3:30 on, she looked up at every new arrival, checking if they acted like they were looking for someone. A pair of sorority girls threw her off for a moment, and she realized she didn’t know anything about who she was meeting besides what he was studying and that he didn’t get along with his parents. She opened a new tab on her laptop and started searching.

He didn’t seem to have a Facebook, or any other social media, at least under his name, but his university page came up, complete with a picture. The short bio didn’t give any more information than his emails, other than his advisor, a professor Snoke Rey had never heard of. His picture, on the other hand, surprised her. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, maybe something along the lines of the stereotypical nerd, or an overgrown frat bro, but the face that glared at her from the screen firmly resisted being fit into any kind of box. He wore a dark button up that made his already pale skin seem even paler, and his expression made clear his opinion of having to sit for the photo. His dark eyes seemed used to scowling, and with the large nose and mouth, she felt like he shouldn’t have been attractive, and yet it somehow _worked_.

She clicked back from the page. At least she knew what he looked like now. The next result was his RateMyProfessor page, and she clicked, interested to see what his students had to say about him as a TA. Like his looks, it was an interesting contrast. No one found his work easy, but strong mixed opinions abounded on how good of a teacher he was. Several condescending opinions on how those complaining just didn’t want to put in the effort contrasted with others pointing out that it was just an entry level class. She scrolled through the surprising number of reviews for a TA until a cleared throat interrupted her from the other side of the table.

“Rey?” Kylo Ren asked with a raised eyebrow, instantly recognizable from his picture. He wore a neat button down and slacks, and she assumed he’d come straight from teaching.

“Yeah, Kylo?” she said, standing awkwardly from behind the table and extending her hand. He nodded and shook it briefly, and they sat down.

She fiddled with her cup as they looked at each other, not sure how to go about this. He talked first. “So, I assume the point of this is to make sure I’m not a homicidal maniac before you commit to twelve hours in a car together?”

She blanched. “Twelve hours?”

He nodded, looking at her as if she should have known that. “Yes. Six there and six back.”

She sighed in relief. “Oh, okay.” Six each way was much easier to handle than an entire day at a time in a car with a near stranger, and was closer to what she’d expected. They fell silent, and Rey traced the lines on her cup before tentatively asking, “So, I know I don’t need to know your entire life story or anything, but... why do you want to do this?”

He shrugged. “Just like you said in your post. My parents haven’t stopped bothering me about bringing someone home since freshman year. Every break I have to hear about how they met on the first day of college, as if that’s an endorsement, and I’m hoping that if I pretend to have a girlfriend once, especially one they don’t like, they’ll lay off. Might even get me out of Christmas.”

Rey’s mouth twisted. That was somehow both better and worse that she expected. It sounded like she wouldn’t be drawn into any serious family drama, and his reason made sense, if somewhat petty, but the idea of wanting to get out of spending time with parents who seemed to at least care about him irritated her. She huffed. It wasn’t her business what he did after this; she just needed to make sure she could get through one holiday with him. “Anything else I need to know?”

He thought for a moment, then shook his head. “One or two of my father’s friends might be there, but I’ll know later, and I can tell you about them on the ride down.”

She cocked her head. “What kind of music do you like?”

He frowned. “Why?” She rolled her eyes.

“Are you planning to spend all twelve hours talking?”

He flushed. “I usually listen to the radio, npr.”

Her brows raised. “For six hours?”

He shrugged again, still pink. “Are we going to do this or not?”

She considered him. She didn’t have anything better to do, and this at least paid, and even got her out of the state. Kylo wasn’t about to win any awards for his sparkling personality, but he seemed honest. Her curiosity still niggled at her, wondering why he couldn’t find a friend or someone he knew to take home, but she figured asking that might be going too far. She nodded, decision made.

“I’ll do it. When do you want to leave?”

“Wednesday afternoon, and come back on Friday morning.”

“Won’t there be traffic then?” she asked, frowning.

“I didn’t think you’d want to stay any longer than necessary,” he replied, tilting his head.

Not her business, she reminded herself. “That’s fine with me. Do you want me to meet you?”

He shook his head. “I’ll pick you up. Where do you live?”

“On Holly, between Spruce and Elm. We should probably trade numbers?”

“Out past the stadium? That’s quite a walk from campus.” He paused to frown at her again as he pulled out his phone.

“I have a bike if I need it,” she said, brushing him off. She didn’t mention that it was more scrap than bike; it still worked when it had to.

He didn’t look like he believed her, but passed his phone over for her to put her number in without comment. She did and handed it back, and her phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number a moment later. He stood. “It was nice to meet you, Rey. I look forward to doing business with you.” He gave her a curt nod, then left.

She watched his retreating back with bemusement. Not what she had expected at all. With a sigh, she closed her laptop and shoved it in her backpack, preparing to walk home. Now she just had to figure out how to explain this to Finn.

-

Fortunately, the subject came up on its own over pizza that night. Chewing thoughtfully, Finn set his pepperoni down.

“So I talked to Rose today.”

Rey raised her brows. “I’d hope you did.”

Finn rolled his eyes. “Yeah, but we talked about Thanksgiving again and,” Rey tried to interrupt, but he kept talking. “I _know_ you said it’s fine, but Rose is your friend too, and I feel really bad leaving you alone over the break - “

“Finn, really, it’s fine,” she said, cutting him off. “I actually...I think I’m going to go with someone else.”

He stared at her. “Who? You’ve never mentioned anyone. Poe? I thought he had his thing with his dad this year.”

“No, not Poe.” She squirmed in her seat. “I, er, just met him, we were talking and he was complaining about how his parents always bug him about never bringing anyone home, and since I wasn’t doing anything…” She trailed off.

“Who? How’d you meet him? Rey - “

“It was at Starbucks, I was studying and we ended up sharing a table. I looked him up and everything, he’s a normal guy, and it’s just for a couple days.”

“You just met - who is he?”

“His name is Kylo, he’s doing his phd in - “

“Kylo _Ren_? You said you’d spend Thanksgiving with _Kylo Ren_?” Finn’s voice kept rising, growing more stressed.

“You know him?” Rey asked in confusion.

“Remember freshman year? That godawful history class I had that convinced me to change majors? _He_ was the TA, with his creepy-ass mentor as the professor. Rey, he’s a nightmare.”

She started shredding the paper towel she’d been using as a napkin. “He didn’t seem that bad.”

Finn gave her a look. “Not _that_ bad?”

She shrugged uncomfortably. “He was fine, a bit weird, but not in a _bad_ way. Just really awkward. A bit of a jerk, but better than most of the guys in my classes.”

Finn rubbed his face. “Rey, seriously, why are you doing this? Rose’s family would be happy to have you, if you wanted to, or we could all just stay here and do something, it’s a pain flying all the way across the country just for a couple days anyway - “

“No,” she said forcefully. “This is important, you and Rose should go spend time with her family. I’m _fine_. It’s not a big deal, it’s just spending a day with his family. I’ve gone on dates sketchier than this.”

Finn still frowned, but sighed in a long exhale. “Okay. Just - be careful. Text me when you can, and don’t let him give you any shit. Anything goes wrong, let me know, I’ll fly back if I have to.”

“I can handle myself,” she promised. “And I’ll text, but same for you. You have to let me know you land safely and everything, and I want pictures.”

“Of course.” Finn leaned in and hugged her. “Love you, peanut.”

She hugged back. “Love you too.”


	4. Confined spaces

The last couple weeks before Thanksgiving flew past quickly. Before she knew it, Rey was hugging Finn on the sidewalk outside the apartment before he headed off to the airport with Rose.

“Be careful,” she told him as she pulled back. “And have fun.” She smiled, and he smiled back. 

“You too. Be _safe_. And I’m not kidding about flying back. If anything’s weird - “

She rolled her eyes and shoved him playfully towards the car. “Get going already. I’ll be fine, I promise.” 

Finn squeezed her one last time, then got in the car where Rose was waiting. Rey waved at both of them, and they pulled away. She shoved her hands in her pockets and turned back to the apartment building. She still had a day before Kylo would come to pick her up for his Thanksgiving. She walked back up to the apartment and flopped onto the couch. If she stayed up late enough tonight, hopefully she could sleep through most of the ride tomorrow. She turned on the tv and started scrolling. 

-

The next morning found her suitably exhausted, and she woke up closer to noon than her usual time. She groaned as she rolled over and off the couch. She fumbled for her phone and squinted at the screen. Finn likely wasn’t up yet, given the time difference, but Kylo had texted her, letting her know that he planned to pick her up at three, which left her a couple hours to get dressed and pack. 

Looking over her limited wardrobe, she almost reached for a sweater to go with a pair of dark jeans before she remembered the part she was supposed to play. Changing directions, she went to a different drawer and pulled out jeans and t-shirts that she usually reserved for working in the shop, worn and grease stained. She winced, but reminded herself that this was what Kylo was paying for. 

She still had over an hour left once she was ready with her backpack packed by the door. She sat back on the couch with her phone, nervously tapping her foot. Feeling confident about what she was doing was easier when she didn’t have to face it head-on, but now that it was nearly on her, it was harder to ignore. She spent the time until three distracting herself, and then when Kylo didn’t show up on time, doing so even more anxiously. 

He finally pulled up at three thirty. As soon as she got his text, Rey threw on her ratty old sweatshirt, grabbed her bag, and rushed down the stairs to meet him. An older black sports car, a Mercedes, she thought, sat in front of the building. It was the kind of car that he could have found on a grad student’s budget, but still showed he wanted to look good for somebody, especially given the care that obviously had gone into it. She opened the passenger door and slid in, shoving her backpack down by her feet. 

“Took you long enough,” she muttered as Kylo pulled away. He raised an eyebrow. 

“Excited?” he said dryly. 

She shrugged. “Just ready to get this over with.”

He snorted. “Agreed.”

They fell silent until Kylo merged onto the highway. She was surprised to see that Kylo wasn’t much more dressed up than she was, wearing what looked like an old emo band t-shirt with jeans, minus the grease stains. Fiddling with her jacket, Rey decided now was as good as ever to bring up the questions that had started bothering her while she was waiting. 

“So if we’re going to do this, we should probably know some things about each other,” she began. Kylo grunted. She rolled her eyes. Ever the conversationalist. “I’m Rey Niima,” she said, ignoring his response. “I’m a mechanical engineering junior with an interest in planes and I want to try for a career in aviation.”

He sighed. “I’m Kylo Ren, a phd student in the history department studying industrialization in the early 20th century. At least, when I’m not forced to teach basic US History to freshman who think that the country’s greatest accomplishment was when Al Gore invented the internet.” 

She snorted. “I know, my roommate had you as a TA in a class with Professor Snoke. You made him change majors.”

“He wouldn’t be the first.”

“Shouldn’t you be trying to encourage them to major in your department, not scare them away?”

“It’s hardly my fault if they don’t know what they’re getting into. I’m sure your friend is much happier doing whatever he’s doing now.”

She couldn’t deny that. Social work fit Finn much better; he probably would have left history eventually one way or another. She shrugged instead of answering. 

“Freshmen never know what they’re doing anyway. What’s the retention rate in engineering these days, one in three, one in five? It’s not my job to coddle them,” he continued.

“No one’s saying that, but it probably wouldn’t kill you to be nice to them either.”

He hummed noncommittally. “Sounds dangerous. Why take the risk?”

She glanced over at him incredulously, and saw the hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth as he continued looking at the road. She found herself smiling too as she looked away and shook her head. “So what do you do when you aren’t terrorizing underclassmen?”

“That usually takes up most of my time.”

She looked at him askance. “Really? No hobbies or anything?”

“I read.”

“Anything other than history?”

“Sometimes I read history that I’m not studying.”

She gave him a disbelieving look, but he seemed to be serious. “Okay…” she said, trailing off. 

“I need to stay on top of my research,” he said, after a moment of silence, apparently feeling like he needed to explain himself. “My advisor encourages me to focus my efforts so I can be competitive in our field.” 

“That sounds...intense.”

He nodded. “He pushes hard, but it’s all to help me.”

She didn’t know what to say to that. They both awkwardly watched the trees pass by them along the road. 

“So - mechanical engineering. What made you want to do that?”

She shrugged. “I’m good with machines, and I figured it’d be a good way to get a good job. It’s hard, but I like it.”

He nodded, then seemed to remember something. “You aren’t into cars or racing or anything are you?”

“I - I guess?” she said, taken aback. “Not like one of the super fans or anything, and it’s not like I’ve gotten to work on any really nice cars, but I help on the Formula SAE team when I have time - “

“Not NASCAR though?”

“Not really. Why?”

He settled back in his seat, still scowling slightly. “It’s nothing. Just wondering.”

She raised her brows. That was hardly nothing, but he clearly wasn’t about to explain. “Now that we’ve gotten to know each other so well,” she said, not bothering to rein in her sarcasm. “We should probably figure out what our story is. How did we meet? How long have we been dating?”

Kylo’s scowl deepened. “Why does that matter?”

“You really think you’re going to show up with a new girlfriend, and no one’s going to ask?”

He huffed. “Fine. What’s our _story_?”

“What did you tell your parents?”

“That I was bringing someone.”

“That’s it?”

“Our conversations tend to be brief.”

Asshole. She thought for a moment. “Okay. We’ve been dating since the beginning of the semester. We met in a coffee shop and started studying together and ended up going out.” He didn’t need to know that her story was based off of Jessika and her last girlfriend, and it wasn’t as if any of his family would notice. 

“A coffee shop? Not Starbucks.”

She remembered her earlier assumption about his disdain for the chain. Apparently she wasn’t far off the mark. “The library then.”

He seemed to accept that, but still wasn’t satisfied. “We’re in completely different fields; how did we end up studying together?”

“You’re the one who couldn’t even come up with how long we’ve been dating. And I study with Finn all the time, you just help each other to focus.”

“Fine. You are the professional after all.” She felt like punching him in the arm for that, but it probably wasn’t a good idea, especially while he was driving. “Speaking of which,” he said, glancing over at her. “There’s a check for you in the glove box.” She opened it and found it easily, sitting on top. One hundred and fifty dollars, spelled out and signed in a narrow scribble. “Hopefully that works for you.”

She folded it and bent down to shove it in her wallet. “Thanks,” she muttered. 

“Anything else we need to figure out before we get there?”

She shook her head. “Is it just going to be your parents?”

“No, Maz and Chewie are going to be there too. They’re my aunt and uncle, more or less.”

She nodded. Silence fell over the car. Slowly, the hum of the engine and the endless pattern of trees and rocks outside the window lulled her to sleep. 

She dozed on and off throughout the afternoon and into the evening. As the sky darkened, they drove through cities, then back out into the countryside. She caught glimpses of tall buildings and skylines off the exits they passed, and she stayed awake long enough to watch one city fade in and out of view before letting her eyes drift closed again. At some point while she was sleeping, Kylo turned the radio on, and the hum of calm voices became part of the background. She glanced over at him, but he kept his focus on the road, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. 

Kylo pulled off to a gas station as the sun was slipping below the horizon. Rey ducked inside to use the bathroom while Kylo filled the tank, and came back out as he was finishing up. 

“You want anything? A snack or something?” he offered. 

She shook her head. “I’m fine, thanks.”

He walked out a few minutes later with a coffee, a water, and a bag of chips. He got in the car, fit the coffee in his cupholder, and passed the water and the chips over to her. “In case you get hungry or whatever,” he said, not looking at her. 

“Thanks,” she said quietly. She stuck the chips down by her backpack, and cracked open the water bottle, taking a sip as she returned to staring out the window and Kylo took them back onto the highway.

They’d been driving in the dark for hours by the time Kylo exited and turned onto more residential roads. He didn’t take them far before slowing and then stopping in front of nondescript house at the end of a road, slightly apart from the rest on the street, but the same style: a low, long ranch house in warm colors with a garden out front. Rey had expected something more intimidating, maybe one of the mcmansions they had passed earlier, but this looked strangely comfortable, like where a grandmother might live in a cheery holiday commercial. Kylo parked in the street in front of the house, joining other cars up and down the road. Pulling the keys out, he looked over at her, then tentatively reached out and touched her shoulder. 

“We’re here,” he said quietly. 

She nodded and stretched, twisting her neck to work the cricks out of it. Kylo got out of the car, opened the trunk, and pulled a laptop bag and duffel out, while Rey grabbed her own bag from the floorboards and slid out of the car. She waited for Kylo to join her on the sidewalk in front of the house. He came around the car with his bags and looked at hers.

“Do you - want me to carry that for you?” he asked, hesitatingly.

She snorted, but smiled. “I’ve got it.” She hiked the strap up on her shoulder. “But thanks.” She started to the house, but Kylo’s hand on her arm stopped her. She looked back at him in surprise. 

“I should probably tell you before we go in - my parents don’t call me Kylo.”

She frowned at him. “Oh?”

“I use Kylo for academia,” he mumbled, looking at his feet. “My name’s actually Ben,”

Before she could form a response to that, the front door opened, spilling light onto the porch and out to the yard.

“Ben!” a short woman cried out, and a man appeared in the doorway behind her. 

“Here we go,” Kylo muttered, hefting his bags and walking forward with head bowed and shoulders hunched, like he was going to the gallows. Wondering exactly what she had gotten herself into, Rey followed. 


	5. The first night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I've been forgoing editing for speed in getting these up, so apologies for any mistakes. Enjoy!)

Rey didn’t think she could have been much more nervous if she was really meeting her new boyfriend’s parents for the first time. It might have made it easier, actually. If she was dating Kylo, maybe she could have reached out for his hand, or had his arm around her for support. As it was, she gripped the straps of her backpack tighter, hands growing sweaty. 

The woman in the doorway held out her arms for Kylo as he approached, and he bent down to hug her. Rey assumed this had to be his mother. She could see the similarities, even though Kylo towered above her. She hugged Kylo tightly, and he returned the gesture while Rey looked on, twisting her bag’s straps uncomfortably. Kylo eventually pulled back, and the woman let him go, beaming at him. She turned to Rey, who took an involuntary step back. 

“And you must be the girlfriend!” she greeted warmly. “Benjamin didn’t mention your name.” She cast a quick glance at her son, who actually managed to look abashed. 

“Rey,” she said, and let go of her bag to hold her hand out awkwardly. The woman took it in both her hands.

“Rey,” she repeated. “It’s very nice to meet you. I’m Leia, Ben’s mother.” Leia pulled her forward and into a hug. Rey’s eyes widened before her arms came around uncertainly in return. Leia smelled faintly of floral perfume and hairspray, and Rey felt self-conscious about her own grease-stained clothes. She pulled back from the embrace just in time to see Kylo address the man in the doorway. 

“Han,” he said coldly, and Leia turned to glare at him.

“ _Ben_ ,” she admonished. Kylo’s head dipped and he scowled at the floor. The similarities between mother and son became even more apparent. 

“Dad,” Kylo muttered, then brushed past him into the house. Leia sighed, and the man gave her a crooked grin with an undercurrent of tiredness. 

“Guess it was too much to hope that he’d change all that much now that he finally brought a girl home,” he said, then turned to Rey. “Han, his old man, even if he won’t admit it.” He held out a hand, and Rey took it, feeling age-worn calluses that matched up with hers. “I’ve got to admit, I didn’t think Ben would actually follow through with it when he told Leia he was bringing someone. I guess even that kid can get something right once in awhile.” He grinned roguishly at her, shaking her hand firmly.

“Han!” Leia admonished, and his grin turned sheepish.

“Sorry,” he said, letting go. “You’re not ready to run off already, are you?”

“Ky-Ben has the keys to the car,” she said, straight-faced, and Han laughed, eyes crinkling. 

“Fair enough. Well, let’s see if we can get to know you a bit before you get those off of him.” He moved to the side of the door and grandly gestured with his hand, welcoming her in. Rey stepped over the threshold, and Leia followed her, closing the door behind them.

“Can I take your coat, dear?” she asked, gesturing to Rey’s sweatshirt. Rey clutched it reflexively. 

“No, I’m fine, thanks.”

Leia nodded and let her hand drop. “You must be hungry after that drive. Han and I left some food in the oven for you.” She shepherded Rey to the kitchen, where Kylo was already sitting at a stool along the counter. Han was leaning in a corner opposite him, both men firmly avoiding looking at each other. Leia ignored them, and sat Rey down next to Kylo with a surprisingly strong hand on her shoulder. Rey watched wide-eyed as Leia bent over the oven and produced a lasagna, with a few pieces already cut out. She set it down on the stovetop and scooped out two more pieces onto waiting plates, then placed them in front of Rey and Kylo. 

“Anything to drink?” she asked.

“Just water,” Rey said quietly.

“I’ve got it,” Kylo said, standing up, but Han beat him to it. 

“You eat, I’ve got it,” he said, reaching for the cupboard on the other side of the stove. Kylo sat back down, disgruntled. 

Rey reached for the fork Leia had set out for her, looking to Kylo guiltily. She hadn’t been kidding in her advertisement about her table manners, drunk as she’d been. After a childhood of eating what she could get as fast as she could, changing her habits proved to be more difficult than she thought once she’d gotten into college. Having to eat in the dining halls freshman year had been hell, and it was a relief for many reasons to move off-campus with Finn sophomore year. And even though part of the reason Kylo was paying her was for her lack of grace, it didn’t stop her from being embarrassed, especially now that she had met the people she was supposed to put off. 

She dug into the lasagna, and nearly moaned with the first bite. She was hungrier than she’d realized, and home-cooked meals didn’t make up a large part of her and Finn’s kitchen. Kylo was more tentative, poking at the lasagna with his fork before taking a small bite.His eyebrows shot up.

“This is _good_ ,” he said, almost accusingly. 

“No need to sound so shocked,” Leia huffed. 

“Where’d you get it?” 

“Maz sent over a shopping list and instructions.”

“ _Detailed_ instructions,” Han added, and Leia glared at him. 

“You _cooked_?” Kylo said in disbelief. He looked around at the room. “And the kitchen’s still standing?”

“Your father was the one who set the place on fire, not me,” Leia said with a sniff. 

“You’ve come close,” Han shot back. Leia rolled her eyes at him and busied herself with wiping a spot off the stove. Han walked over to the counter with two glasses of water and sat them in front of Rey and Kylo, then bent next to Rey. “Maz also sent over a spare, just in case,” he muttered, low enough that Leia couldn’t hear. “Said she didn’t want Ben’s girlfriend starving to death before she could meet her. Leia tried, but her’s went up in smoke. It’s a good thing you were late; we destroyed the evidence before you two got here.”

“Han Solo, what lies are you telling that girl now?”Leia said, walking over and eyeing her husband with well-deserved suspicion. Han held up his hands in defense. 

“No lies, princess, promise.” 

Rey looked between the two of them, pieces slowly clicking together in her head. “Han...Solo?” she said, tentatively. “You’re Han Solo.”

Han puffed up. “In the flesh.”

“The NASCAR driver?”

“I used to be,” he said, winking at her.

Kylo glared. “Stop flirting with my girlfriend,” he snapped. 

Han held up his hands again as he backed off. “If this old man can steal her away, you’re not doing enough,” he said with a grin. Kylo kept glaring at him until he gave in and turned to grab Leia. 

“I thought you said you weren’t a NASCAR fan,” Kylo muttered, sounding put out.

“I said I wasn’t a huge fan, not that I lived under a rock,” she snapped. “His face was on cereal boxes.”

Kylo scowled at his lasagna. Rey reached out for her water and took a sip. “Thank you,” she said to Han, who had wrapped his arms around his wife. 

“Anything for my future daughter-in-law,” he said, winking again.

Rey choked on the water. “Han!” Leia admonished. She coughed, trying to put the glass down without dropping it, and Kylo pounded her on the back. When she could breathe again, she looked up with watering eyes to see Han bending over her with concern, looking sheepish but unrepentant. 

He straightened when he saw she was alright and turned back to his wife. “What? Might be our only chance.”

“ _Han_ ,” Leia repeated, in what Rey was beginning to feel was a frequent refrain between them. “You’re going to scare her off before we even get to Thanksgiving dinner.”

Han grinned. “If she’s stuck around with Ben long enough for him to get her here, there’s not anything I can do to frighten her any more.”

Leia simply looked at him with raised eyebrows. With cheeks still furiously red, Rey bent down to her supper. She shoved another forkful in her mouth to try to cover up the awkwardness and winced when she felt sauce splatter on her shirt and cheeks. 

“How’s your thesis going?” Leia asked her son, breaking the silence that fell over the kitchen. 

“Fine,” Kylo replied, stabbing his food. The deepening of his scowl at what seemed to be a normal question confused Rey. 

“Has your - Have you started planning for your defense yet?” Leia prodded.

Kylo looked up and glared at her now. “Dr. Snoke will start planning that when I’m ready.”

“Don’t you think it should be getting near time? It’s been years - “

“I _think_ Dr. Snoke would be better informed on that decision.”

Leia’s eyes narrowed. “Snoke - “ she began.

“Yes, you’ve made your opinion of my advisor perfectly clear, multiple times,” Kylo snapped. “Unless you have anything new to add…”

Leia’s lips pressed into a thin line. Han stepped forward now. “There’s no need for that, your mother’s just trying to look out for you.”

“Because now that’s such a concern?” Kylo snarled.

“Enough, both of you,” Leia said, stepping between them. “Ben, you can’t spend your entire career on one paper. Your advisor will have to accept that at some point.”

“My advisor is far more qualified than _you_ to make that assessment.”

“And you’re smart enough to make your own decisions about your future.”

“I _am_. I’m not ready, and neither is my work. Dr. Snoke still sees plenty of room for improvement.”

Leia fell silent for a moment. “Did you ever look for a new therapist?” she finally asked, quiet enough that Rey could barely hear. She busied herself even more intensely with her food, feeling like an intrusion.

“No,” he snarled. “I don’t need to waste my time with that.” He shoved himself back from the counter and stood up. The three of them watched as he stomped off from the kitchen and down the hallway. A moment later, a door slammed.

Leia sighed, slumping. “Well, that went better than last year,” Han joked weakly. Leia glared at him, and he sighed as well. “It’s not your fault, princess.”

“Don’t,” she snapped, pushing him off of her. Han looked like he wanted to say something else, but stayed quiet and leaned back against the counter instead. 

Leia leaned forward on the counter opposite, gaze distant as she looked after where her son had disappeared to. Coming back to herself, she looked over at Rey, and gave her a smile. “Do you want any more?” she asked, gesturing at the plate where Rey was dragging her fork through the leftover sauce. 

Rey shook her head and pushed the plate away. “No, thank you.” Leia nodded and took her and Kylo’s plates to the sink, while Rey surreptitiously wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. 

Leia turned back to Rey. “I don’t know if you’re tired or not yet, I know what kind of hours you college kids keep, but Han and I will probably be going to bed soon -”

“Us old people need our rest,” Han interjected. Leia shot him a glance.

“You’re welcome to stay up, if you’d like, the tv’s over there -”

“It’s fine,” Rey said, shaking her head. Even with all the sleep she’d gotten during the drive, she was more than ready to lay down somewhere.

“Okay, Ben’s room is at the end of the hallway on the left, and we’re just across the hall if you need anything. Bathroom is the first door on the right,” Leia instructed.

Ben’s - of course. “Thanks,” she said, blushing furiously again. She bent down for her bag.

“Don’t stay up too late,” Han said, smirking, as she turned to leave, and Leia smacked his arm. Rey felt her face burning.

She hesitated at the end of the hallway, then knocked on the door. “What?” Kylo growled from the other side.

“It’s me.”

He paused, then, “Come in.”

She did, closing the door behind her. She looked around, taking in the room. Everything was neat, mostly plain, and in various dark shades. A large bed sat in front of her, and Kylo sat at a desk on the opposite wall, his laptop open in front of him. The desk was plain, but looked beaten-up, with several well-worn dents in the sides, one of them splintering.

He looked up. “What?” he repeated. 

“Your mother -” She gestured helplessly towards the door. 

He rolled his eyes. “Of course.”

Rey’s frustration spilled out of her. “Look, this was your dumb idea.”

“I know,” he snapped, then sighed. “It’s fine. I’ll take the floor.” He stood and pulled the comforter and a pillow off the bed, then started arranging them on the floor.

“No, I - “ She ran her hand through her hair. “I can’t kick you out of your own bed.”

“It’s _fine_ ,” he insisted. “Like you said, my dumb idea.”

She gritted her teeth. “It’s your bed, and it’s plenty big for both of us. We’re both adults, we can manage this for a couple nights.” The look he gave her was almost scandalized, and her lips twitched as she tried to keep herself from laughing from the stress and the ridiculousness of their situation. “I promise I don’t have cooties,” she told him, even as she felt fairly certain that she was just digging herself deeper.

He glared. “Fine.” He tossed the blanket and pillow back on the bed and stalked the short distance back to his computer. 

Rey hesitated, then bent over her bag and rummaged through to get her pajamas and toiletries. She ducked back out of Kylo’s room to the bathroom to wash up and change. Leia and Han were gone from the kitchen, and once in the bathroom, she could hear the water running in their bathroom through the wall. 

Rey stared at herself in the mirror, her face pink and scrubbed and the worn t-shirt and shorts she’d brought for night clothes hanging off of her. She looked overwhelmed, maybe a little lost, and she scrunched her face at herself. She could manage another day and a half of this. After all, Kylo had already paid, she couldn’t back out now. Gathering her stuff, she returned to his room. 

He hadn’t moved from his desk and only gave her a glance as she entered. She tucked her bag near the foot of the bed, then hesitated before crawling in. The sheets were cold against her arms and legs, and she slipped under the blankets, curling into a ball with her back to the wall. She grabbed a pillow and shoved it under her head. 

Buried in Kylo’s bed under his blankets, she could smell him on the sheets, even though it’d likely been months since he’d slept there. It was a warm kind of scent, a little like leather and spices, and she pinked. She wasn’t usually flustered, but pretending to be Kylo’s girlfriend presented new sources of embarrassment every other minute. Rey shifted a bit, then settled. Kylo stayed at his computer, looking like he was reading something. Probably more schoolwork. 

The room fell quiet. Muffled through the walls, Rey could hear Han and Leia talking from across the hall. “You’ll get used to it,” Kylo said bitterly, and Rey jumped at the sound of his voice. 

The couple’s conversation rose and fell. Rey lay awake in the bed, thinking over Kylo’s conversation, of sorts, with his parents over supper. She tried to remind herself that it wasn’t her business, but part of it kept bothering her. 

“What were you seeing a therapist for?” she finally asked quietly.

Kylo shifted on his chair, and she looked up to see him staring out the window into the backyard. “Just stress,” he answered after a pause. “I had some issues back when I first graduated and started working with Dr. Snoke. He helped me sort it out though. The therapist was useless. I just needed to work harder and focus.”

Rey bit her cheek and nodded. Silence fell between them again, and she was left to turn over her thoughts.

-

It was late, but Rey wasn’t quite asleep when Kylo finally closed his laptop. She lazily opened her eyes to peer at him. He walked over to his dresser and pulled out a shirt and pants, then pulled the shirt he was wearing over his head. Her eyes widened, taking in the wide expanse of his surprisingly muscled back, then she squeezed them shut again, cheeks flaming, when he glanced back over his shoulder to her, his hands falling to the waistband of his pants. She kept her eyes closed through the soft sounds of fabric hitting the floor, then him pulling the other clothes on. 

He turned the lights off. Her eyes were still shut tight when he came over to the bed, and she stiffened almost unconsciously as she felt him standing over her. Instead of laying down, he slowly pulled the pillow from next to her, then started to tug on the top blanket. She groaned. 

“Just get on the damn bed, Kylo,” she told him. He froze, and her mouth twitched in a smile. When he didn’t move again, she scooched back towards the wall to make more room for him. 

Tentatively, he raised one knee onto the bed, then slowly lay down, body as close to the edge as possible. He lifted the blankets and slid underneath, keeping the sheet between them. She cracked an eye open and saw the outline of him laying on his side with his back to her in the faint light from the window, his dark hair tousled. She closed her eyes again, listening to the rhythm of his breathing as she drifted to sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm swiftly closing the gap between what I've written and what I've posted, so apologies for slower updates, but I swear I'll have at least part of the Thanksgiving chapter up by the end of the week. (I'm a very slow writer, which is why I usually finish a story before posting, but wanted to get this up this year, not next Thanksgiving. >_<)
> 
> Thank you all so much for all your feedback, I can't express how much it helps to keep me working on this story. <3
> 
> A very happy Thanksgiving to everyone, especially to those reading this on their phones under the table at dinner XD


	6. Thanksgiving morning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I survived another year of Black Friday shopping! The mall was hideous, but I made it out to bring you this, such as it is, enjoy!

Rey woke feeling pleasantly warm, much different than her usually chilly apartment. She curled happily further into the heat, arching her back and rolling her shoulders. The heat responded, the weight laying over her stomach curling tighter. Warm breath puffed over her shoulder and she jerked, suddenly much more awake. A wall pressed against her tucked legs in front of her, and a large body crowded her from behind. Awkwardly craning her neck, she looked over her shoulder to see Kylo’s face tucked against her. She huffed. This was not what they’d agreed to. 

She turned over in his arms, struggling under his weight while he leaned into her. He grumbled as she disturbed him, but didn’t wake. She pushed on his shoulder, definitely not noticing the warmth of his skin and muscle under her hands, until she finally succeeded in shoving him over onto his back. He still surrounded her, cutting off any escape except over him. Determined, she braced herself on his very broad chest and straddled him, preparing to drag herself over him and roll off the bed. She turned bright red as she registered a very specific firmness underneath her. 

He groaned and his eyes fluttered open. She froze, one knee on each side of his waist. His hands came up to clutch at her hips as he blinked awake. He looked at her and blinked again. 

“What are you doing?” he asked, voice rumbling under her hands. 

“Trying to get out of bed,” she said accusingly. “ _You_ trapped me.”

He looked at her, eyebrows raising. “That’s not what it looks like.” His cheeks flushed as well, spreading all the way up to his ears revealed by his hair spread across his pillow.

She scoffed and slid off of him, landing with a thump on the floor. “You were wrapped around me like a teddy bear when I woke up. I was just trying to get free.”

He sat up, pulling the blankets up over his lap to cover himself, his face now fully red. “Sorry,” he muttered. 

“It-It’s fine.” She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at the ceiling intently. 

“What time is it?” He leaned across the bed to the nightstand, fumbling for his phone. He squinted as he turned it on, then groaned, head thumping back against the headboard. “Eight thirty? Why are you even awake?” 

She rolled her eyes and bent to grab her things from her bag. “This is later than I normally get up,” she informed him. 

He grunted unintelligibly, dropped his phone back down, and turned back over onto his side towards the wall, pulling the blankets up with him. She stood, watching, but he seemed serious about returning to sleep. Shrugging, she took her clothes to go shower. 

Apparently Kylo wasn’t the only one in the family to sleep in. When she emerged from the bathroom, she was still the only one up. She returned her night clothes to Kylo’s bedroom, where he was still sleeping, and took her laptop out to the family room. She checked her phone and saw only Finn’s goodnight message from sometime after midnight. She smiled and sent him a message for when he woke up. She’d gotten several worried messages from him yesterday, but assured him she was fine. 

Sometime after nine, she heard the shower start running in the master bathroom, and by ten, Leia had emerged, dressed in neat clothes and with her greying hair wrapped up in a complicated bun. Rey felt self-conscious over her own clothes again, but Leia didn’t seem to notice.

“Rey!” she said, sounding surprised, but pleased, to see her. “Good morning. Did you sleep alright?”

Rey did her best not to blush. “Yeah, good, thanks.” She closed her laptop and set it awkwardly on the coffee table. “K-Ben mentioned a couple other people are coming over?”

Leia walked to the kitchen and started pulling food out of the cabinets and fridge. “Yes, Chewie and Maz, a couple of old family friends. Very old,” she said, smiling fondly. Rey stood from the couch and followed her over, hands shoved in her pockets. “Maz said they’d be over around noon, but knowing her, it’ll probably be closer to eleven, with even more food than she promised, but I am going to get something started before she gets here. The turkey needs to get in soon, to start.”

Rey looked across the counters next to the stove. Leia had gotten out a pair of frozen pies and a couple boxes of stuffing. She turned to the fridge again and pulled out a large, raw turkey wrapped in plastic, which she plopped onto the counter, then rummaged underneath the oven until she produced a deep metal pan. She set it next to the turkey. Rey looked at the bird dubiously. Leia stepped out of the kitchen to the phone on the wall in the hallway just outside, and flipped through the notepad pinned next to it. With a sound of triumph, she pulled a page out and brought it back to the kitchen. She moved it back and forth in front of her eyes, frowning.

“Would you mind grabbing my glasses from the dining room, Rey? They should be at the end of the table near the newspaper.” Rey nodded, found them where she’d said, and returned. “Thank you, dear.” 

With her glasses perched on her nose, she peered at the page intently. She set it on the counter, still looking at it, and hesitantly lifted the turkey into the roasting pan. She looked at the pair, frowning. 

“Scissors,” she muttered, and started pulling open drawers. Knives and silverware slid around with metallic clangs. Looking across the counters, Rey spotted the scissors in a mug cluttered with large spoons and spatulas next to the stove. 

“These?” she said, handing them to Leia.

“Oh, thank you!” Taking the scissors and rolling up her sleeves, Leia stabbed into the plastic surrounding the turkey and cut at it until she could pull it off. She disposed of the wrapper and rinsed her hands off, then returned to her page of instructions. Muttering to herself, she set the oven, then picked up the box of stuffing. She frowned fiercely at the instructions on the back. 

Rey watched, fascinated, as Leia went about attempting to stuff and cook the turkey. It looked like a very complicated endeavor, and she helped when she could, proving to be better at finding things than Leia was in her kitchen, but was no help when it came to the details. She kept out of Leia’s way as she bustled about the kitchen distractedly. It wasn’t until Leia started trying to shove the stuffing into the bird that Han emerged from the bedroom. He was dressed, but still maintained the scruffy look of someone who looked like they were more likely to sleep on the floor or in a car than in a bed. He looked at his wife with her arm in a turkey with suspicion.

“Shouldn’t you wait for Maz to get here?” he suggested. 

Rey winced, certain even with her limited experience that that wasn’t the right thing to say. Sure enough, Leia turned to her husband with her unoccupied hand landing on her hip. “I am perfectly capable of cooking a simple turkey, Han Solo.” He gave her a doubting look. 

“I seem to remember - “

“Never mind what you remember,” Leia cut him off, flushing. “If you’re not going to help, you can get the plates out and start getting the table ready.”

Han shrugged and wandered into the dining room. They heard the cabinet open and the chime of china being pulled out. Leia looked at the turkey and sighed. “I think we’re about done here,” she said wryly. “Rey, why don’t you go ahead and drag Ben out of bed? Maz and Chewie will probably be here soon.”

“Okay,” Rey said, after hesitating. She went to Kylo’s room and knocked on the door. When there was no response, she entered. 

Seeing Kylo curled up near the wall, around where she had been that morning, made her blush again. He’d managed to wrap all the blankets around his legs, while his chest was nearly bare, with his t-shirt shoved up under his arms. Leaning over the bed, she poked at his shoulder hard. Like that morning, he didn’t wake, but grunted and rolled over, nearly trapping her arm under him. She scowled and retrieved her hand. She shoved his shoulder this time, shaking him, and whispered his name loudly. 

“Kylo, come on. Your mom said you need to get up.”

He groaned, turned his head, and squinted at her. “Aren’t you supposed to be listening to me, not her?”

She crossed her arms. “I listen to whoever I want to, thank you very much. And I think refusing to wake up my supposed ‘boyfriend’ would have been the worse option there.”

He groaned again and stretched his arms over his head. Against her will, her gaze was drawn down to his stomach, then inexorably along the dark line that disappeared under the sheets. A sudden vivid memory of that morning assaulted her, and she jerked her eyes up, but not far. How the hell did a workaholic grad student maintain those kinds of abs? She looked hurriedly back to his face, feeling her cheeks heat even more. Kylo rubbed his face with his hands, then looked at her and frowned. 

“You okay? You look flushed.” He scowled. “My dad hasn’t been harassing you again, has he? I’ll - “

“No, he’s fine,” she said hurriedly. “He’s helping your mom set up for dinner.” 

Kylo grunted. “I probably should get up then, before the fire trucks get here.”

She cocked her head. “Did that really happen?”

He pinched his nose. “Yes. He was trying to make something simple, like pasta and chicken or some shit, then got distracted by arguing with Mom, and it ended up burning or boiling over or something and the stove caught fire. We got it out before it got far, but it fucked up the gas lines or something, so Dad and Chewie had to fix it.” Rey winced, and he continued. “Mom’s just as bad though. She nearly did the same thing, but she got to the fire extinguisher before it got big, so Dad didn’t find out.”

Rey looked worriedly back towards his door and the kitchen. “Tell Mom I’ll be out in a couple minutes,” Kylo said, swinging his legs off of the bed.

Rey nodded. “She says Maz and Chewie will probably be here soon.” Kylo nodded, sitting on the edge of the bed, and she left. 

She returned to the kitchen, where Leia was putting the finishing touches on the turkey and preparing to put it in the oven. “Doesn’t look half bad, do you think?” she said to Rey, regarding it. Rey tilted her head and hummed noncommittally. Cooking a whole turkey was completely her minimal cooking abilities. It looked large and raw to her. 

Leia shrugged. “It’ll do.” She picked up the roasting pan. “Get the oven?” she asked Rey, who did. 

While they were bent over, the doorbell rang. “Han!” she yelled, and Rey jerked back. 

“I’m going, I’m going,” Han grumbled from the dining room. The front door opened a moment later. 

“Han Solo!” a woman’s voice called out. 

“Hey, Maz,” Han greeted. “Chewie.” Another man grunted in response.

“Come on,” Leia beckoned Rey, wiping her hands off on a towel hanging off the oven. Rey followed nervously. 

“Leia, darling,” the woman who had to be Maz said warmly, and Leia bent down to hug her. 

“Maz,” she replied, just as affectionately. 

Maz was somehow even shorter than Leia, with wrinkled dark skin, huge round glasses that made her look almost owlish, a colorful knitted hat stretched over her head that matched her sweater, a collection of bangles that trailed up her arm, and a thick walking stick. Behind her, Han embraced what had to be Chewie. They thumped each other on the back, then broke apart. Rey did a double take at seeing the couple together. The opposite of his partner, Chewie was tall enough that his thick and bushy hair nearly brushed the door frame. Rey thought Kylo was tall and well-built, even compared to her not inconsiderable height and muscles, but Chewie managed to be taller, broader, and far hairier than her fake boyfriend. His eyes were dark underneath his thick fringe, and what she could see of his skin underneath the hair was tanned and weathered. 

Leia placed a hand on Rey’s back and she stumbled forward. “This is Rey,” she announced happily. “Ben’s _girlfriend_. Rey, Maz and Chewie.”

“Hi,” Rey said, waving awkwardly. Chewie gave a growled greeting that she couldn’t quite make out and wrapped her in a hug. She was suddenly enveloped in a huge leather coat and the smells of metal and grease. It surrounded her in warmth, and she felt oddly teary as he let go. He passed her to Maz with a huge hand on her shoulder. The small woman took Rey’s hands in hers and looked up at her intently. Rey’s own eyes widened in response. Her gaze made her feel vaguely uncomfortable and twitchy, like she could see into Rey’s thoughts and knew exactly what she was doing here. When she finally let go, Rey let out her breath. 

“It’s good to meet you, Rey,” she said seriously, with a smile twitching at her lips, adding to the impression that she knew more than she was saying. 

“Come in, come in,” Leia said, stepping to the side. Maz and Chewie moved out of the doorway, and Han closed the door behind them. Han and Chewie lingered to pick up the bags of food that had been abandoned during the greetings and brought them to the kitchen, with Rey following behind. 

The five of them nearly filled the kitchen, and Rey lingered by the door. Han and Chewie set the bags down and started unpacking. Leia vacillated between embarrassed and grateful as Chewie pulled a seemingly never ending supply of food in various oddly shaped containers from the bags, and Maz set them around the kitchen. Some she popped into the oven, while others went in the fridge, or waiting on the counters. Han carried on a conversation with Chewie about some car the larger man was working on. Chewie’s accent and habit of mumbling into his beard made his words hard to distinguish, but as Rey listened, she slowly picked them out, and ended up following their conversation with interest. Maz flitted around the kitchen, getting everything in order, while Chewie gave her what she needed, usually without her having to ask. Leia tried to help here and there, but ended up doing much as Rey had done earlier, sticking to the side and watching. 

In the middle of stirring a bowl of vegetables, Maz handed the spoon to Leia and emerged from the kitchen. “Benjamin!” she called out across the house. They all turned to see Kylo standing in the entrance to the hallway, clearly just emerged from his room. He glared. “Come here,” she instructed, holding her arms out to him. 

He crossed the room and bent nearly in half to meet her, scowl still firmly in place. She looked at him as she pulled back, and Rey could recognize her penetrating gaze from afar. It gratified her to see the Kylo seemed just as discomforted by it as she was. Maz watched, smiling, as Kylo passed her to lurk at the entrance to the kitchen. 

Chewie greeted him with crossed arms and a heavy stare, then finally spoke. “Met your girl,” he grumbled, nodding towards Rey. “Good of ya to bring ‘er.”

Kylo didn’t seem to know how to respond to that. He settled with nodding jerkily. 

“Thanks.” He wrapped an arm around Rey’s waist awkwardly. She jumped before she caught herself and tried to settle into it. She could feel his warmth clearly through her t-shirt and tried not to think too hard about how large his arm was as it pressed against her. His hand settled on her hip, effectively covering it. 

Han emerged from behind Chewie. “Look who’s finally up,” he said jovially, and Kylo’s hand tightened around Rey. “Hey, it’s probably too early for the game to start, but we could probably catch the pregame show.” He looked at Kylo expectantly. 

“Actually,” Kylo said, standing straight. “Rey hates football. Wouldn't want to disappoint our guest. Isn't that right, sweetheart?”

Rey barely restrained herself from glaring at Kylo. Instead, she settled her hand in top on his on her hip and pinched him subtly. He jumped, and her lips twitched in a suppressed smile. 

“Yeah,” she said, wondering what the probability was of the floor opening up beneath her in the next couple seconds. “Can’t stand it.”

To her both her and Kylo’s surprise, Han laughed. “Fine by me! Overhyped nonsense anyway.”

Kylo looked as if Han had insulted his hair. “Since when don’t you like football?”

Han shrugged, embarrassed. “Never really been my thing, to be honest.”

“Why’d you drag me to all those games for years if you didn’t even _like_ it?” Kylo demanded. “Was it just to show off that you could get the seats?”

Han looked away, scratching his head. “I just figured it was the kind of thing I was supposed to do,” he offered guiltily. “Never did know much about kids, but that seemed to be what boys expected from their old man.”

Kylo scowled at a spot near the floor, arms crossed. 

“Could have been worse,” Han joked weakly. “I could have been dragging you to baseball games every weekend.” Kylo didn’t respond. 

Maz came out from the kitchen, walking between father and son carelessly. “Turkey’ll be a couple hours yet,” she announced. Her large eyes twinkled up at Rey. “That’ll be plenty of time for us to get to know each other.” Resigning herself, Rey let Maz lead her to the family room, Kylo and the rest of the family following behind. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next half to come once I've written it! As always, your reviews keep me going.


	7. Thanksgiving dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to update this tomorrow, but I caught up on all of your lovely comments and felt inspired, so here you go!

Chewie and Maz took the couch, while Leia and Han both took their own chairs, leaving Rey and Kylo to share the loveseat. Kylo sat in one corner, long arms spread across the back and the arm and his legs crossed. Rey perched on the other half, then remembered herself and slid further back, leaning tentatively against Kylo. He tensed for a moment, then relaxed, arm settling around her again. 

“So you must tell us, dear: how did you meet our Ben?” Maz asked. Rey noticed with an odd sort of surprise that she and Chewie were sitting in much the same position as her and Kylo. 

“Yeah, you’re the first proof we’ve had that he does anything other than study,” Han jibed, sounding like he was trying to move past the earlier conversation. Leia kicked him, still smiling, without looking away from Rey and Kylo. 

“He works hard,” Rey said simply. She didn’t need to know Kylo for long to realize that. He looked at her in surprise, but she pushed forward with their planned story. “We met in the library, actually - “

“Figures,” Han muttered, grinning, and Leia kicked him again, almost out of habit. 

“We started studying in the same place all the time, and finally ended up talking, and then eventually decided to go out.” Rey shrugged. “Nothing too interesting.”

Even as she explained, knowing that it was just a tweaked version of a friend’s story, she couldn’t help but imagine how it would have gone if it was really her and Kylo. He likely would have been grumpy that someone else had invaded _his_ space, and would have made the first passive-aggressive comment. She would have stayed and kept coming back out of spite. It probably would have taken longer than a couple months, but maybe after watching each other suffer through late nights and long weekends of work, they would have gotten past the antagonism, agreed to take a break together, and things could have developed from there. She realized she was imagining the scenario fondly, and wasn’t quite sure why: whether wanting to have gotten to know her partner in deception through something other than a shady Craigslist deal, or a longing for being introduced to his family as a real girlfriend who would want to impress them, and didn’t have to feel guilty about liking them or them liking her back. 

Lost in her thoughts, she missed what Leia said next. “Sorry, what?” she said when she noticed Leia looking at her expectantly. 

“Are you studying history too then?” she repeated.

“Oh, no, engineering. Mechanical.”

“Really? Doing grad work?” Leia sounded interested, sitting forward in her chair.

“No, just my bachelor's. I’m a junior this year.”

“Oh! You’re younger than I thought.”

Rey’s lips quirked. “I get that a lot.”

“Engineering, I’m sure that keeps you busy too,” Maz offered.

Rey shrugged. “Busy enough, yeah. With any luck, it’ll be worth it though.”

Leia nodded. “Do you get to see your family often then? Are they in the area?”

Rey leaned back, her lips pressing together. Kylo looked at her curiously even as his arm wrapped further around her. “My - I don’t really have one,” she said finally. “I was in foster care since I was little, and I left the last home I was at when I went to college.” She looked down at her lap, fidgeting. 

Leia laid her hand over hers and Rey jumped. “I’m sorry,” she said honestly. Rey wasn’t used to accepting other people’s sympathy, but she nodded, throat feeling tight. Leia’s palm was warm and soft against her hand, and the older woman squeezed comfortingly. “We’re happy to have you with us, and you’ll always be welcome here.” The weight of her sincerity fell over Rey heavily. 

“Thank you,” Rey choked out. Kylo’s arm was still wrapped around her shoulders, and she could feel his gaze on her, but didn’t look up to meet it. She stared at the floor, growing steadily more uncomfortable.

Kylo cleared his throat. “So. Mom. How’s….work?” It was clearly meant as a distraction, but Rey was filled with a rush of gratitude. 

Leia sat back up, eyeing her son with a look that said she knew what he was doing, but would allow it. “It’s work,” she said sighing. “Just when I swear I’m done with it all and finally going to retire, maybe do something respectable like trash collecting, there’s another disaster to take care of.”

“She set a new record of threats to retire last week,” Han piped up. “Called me twice at the garage in one day to make plans to go take a roadtrip as far away from the capital as we could get. Nearly started planning stops by the middle of the week.”

Leia smiled at him wistfully. “One of these days, I promise.” Han laughed.

“She’ll say that until the day I’m in my grave,” he told Rey. 

“What do you do?” Rey asked Leia curiously. 

“I’m a politician, currently a senator for the state, but I spend most of my time beating my head against a wall,” Leia said with a wry smile.

Rey’s eyes widened in sudden recognition. “I saw you in a youtube video! The one where you took down some old dude in an argument. My friend showed me it a couple months ago.”

Leia laughed. “I didn’t know that was still making the rounds. It was Senator Arbo, if I’m thinking of the same video. He’s still not talking to me. If I’d known I could get him to shut up like that, I would have done it sooner, even if it has made things a little harder.” 

Rey looked at her in mild awe, then glanced back at Kylo, who was scowling into the distance. The more she learned about his family, the more she realized just how much her misguided advertisement had appealed to him. She sighed. 

Leia cleared her throat, apparently noticing the tension between the two. “What about you, Rey, do you work? Or are you focusing on school right now?”

“No, I did, but after last year’s state budget, the university cut the student positions from the office I was working in. I’ve been trying to find something new, but so is everyone. I should have something next semester though.”

Leia grimaced in sympathy. “It’s been a rough couple of years for budgets, but cutting off students will never make sense to me. At least that gives you something of a break in your schedule this semester, gives you some more time to breathe?”

Rey shrugged. “Yeah, a bit. I help with the formula one competition team when I can, so I got to be more involved with that this semester, which was something.”

Han perked up in his chair. “Formula one? What do you do with that?”

She explained the competition and the school’s team while Kylo’s family listened intently. Han frequently interrupted to ask questions, with occasional input from Chewie. Once she’d thoroughly explained everything she could about her experience, the conversation shifted to their exploits, the years racing, and all the cars that had come through their garage. 

Rey was laughing at one of Han’s stories when Kylo’s hand landed on hers heavily. She looked at him, surprised. He’d been quiet since he’d distracted the conversation earlier. 

“I need to talk to you,” he said standing. 

She stood too, confused, and followed him to the kitchen. Once there, he turned back to her, scowling. 

“What are you doing?” he demanded.

“What do you mean?” she responded, though she thought she knew what he was talking about. She crossed her arms defensively.

He gestured widely back to the room where his family was still chatting. “You’re supposed to be putting them off! Not making them _like_ you.”

She scowled. “I’m sorry being an asshole doesn’t come to me as naturally as it does to you.”

“That’s not - “ He ran his hand through his hair agitatedly. “I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry.” She blinked in surprise. He looked away from her to the floor. “I didn’t know about your family,” he muttered, then repeated, “I’m sorry.”

She only scowled more fiercely. She didn’t need that brought back up. “That’s because I didn’t tell you. I don’t need you feeling sorry for me. You’re right; you’re not paying me to be nice. I’ll just think of you to improve my performance. Come on.” She started to the doorway, but barely took a step before Kylo grabbed her arm. She turned around and shook him off angrily. “What?”

“I didn’t - “ His hand went back to his hair in frustration. Her arms folded again and she tapped her foot. “You don’t need to do that,” he finally said in a huff. 

“Do what?” she snapped.

“Be worse. You’re fine the way you are. More than fine. I just - “ He trailed off, glaring at a point to the side of her face. 

“What?” she said again.

“This was a mistake,” he said in a huff. 

Rey’s stomach dropped. “What do you mean?”

“I feel like I’m taking advantage of you. You don’t deserve that.”

“You paid me,” she pointed out. 

“I know, but - it’s not fair to you.” 

She frowned, not quite sure what to make of that, then sighed. “Kylo, it’s fine. We just have to get through the rest of today and getting back tomorrow together. Then we can go back to being complete strangers and never have to see each other again.”

“No!” he said desperately. “That’s not what I - “ 

“Everything okay back here?” Han’s voice floated around the corner as his steps came closer across the carpet. 

Kylo looked at her with panicked eyes. Before she could register what was happening, he grabbed her face in his hands and slammed his lips onto hers. She gave a muffled noise of surprise. Scowling against him, she brought a hand up to his hair to pull him back at least a little. His eyes met hers, nearly cross-eyed with how close they were. 

“Please,” he whispered.

She rolled her eyes, and tugged his hair again. He started to withdraw, but she kept her hand in place to keep him from moving away, and pulled again, to the side, cursing him mentally to get the point. With a widening of his eyes, what she was trying to do finally registered, and he tilted his head and leaned in to her just as Han came into view. Her eyes fell closed, enjoying this much more now that his lips weren’t crushing hers. Instinctively, she slid her lips along his.

If she’d thought about it, which she had firmly not done, she thought she would have realized just how much his lips were made for this. Wide, plush, and surprisingly soft, kissing them was incredibly easy. Even with the awkwardness of their start, he quickly caught on, mimicking her subtle movements. His hands shifted from clutching her face to holding it, his thumbs sweeping gently across her cheeks, and she gasped. He took advantage of the opening and deepened the kiss, and she gladly let him. 

“Well, I’ll just leave you two alone then,” Han’s amused voice came from the doorway.

Kylo and Rey jumped apart, not having to fake their surprise. Han smirked at them, and returned to the family room, whistling. As they listened, his voice could be heard whispering something, likely to Leia, as the next sound was her slapping his arm. 

Rey turned back to Kylo. “What was that?” she demanded, annoyed at how breathless she sounded. 

He winced. “I’m sorry. I panicked.”

“And that’s the best you could come up with?”

“It worked?”

She rolled her eyes. “That was not what we agreed to.”

“Sorry,” he repeated guiltily.

“It’s fine,” she sighed. “Just...warn me next time.”

“Next time?”He cocked his head to the side.

She flushed. “You know what I mean.”

He frowned, but a smile played at the corner of his mouth. “I don’t think I do.”

She scrunched her face at him. “Go back out there before your Dad starts telling everyone we’re desecrating the kitchen.”

He groaned, but complied. She watched him go and raised a hand to her mouth. “That was definitely not what we agreed to,” she muttered. 

She was still standing there when Maz came over to check on the food. She looked at Rey evaluatingly. “You all with us, dear?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Rey replied hastily. Maz raised her eyebrows, but didn’t say anything. 

She opened the oven and hummed thoughtfully, then poked around a bit with a fork. “All ready,” she finally declared. “Go grab the rest of them, would you?” Rey nodded and left the kitchen.

In the family room, Han and Chewie were debating enthusiastically over the details of some old story. 

“I may be an idiot, but I’m not _that_ dumb,” Han defended himself, grinning. 

Chewie shook his head. “You started it, and you know ya did.” he shot back, laughter in his rumbling voice. 

“I never did! He threw the first punch, I swear.”

Leia watched with exasperated amusement, while Kylo looked pained. Rey cleared her throat. “Maz says the food’s ready.”

Still bickering, Han and Chewie got up and followed Leia to the kitchen. Kylo hung back and walked with her. She noticed that his ears turned pink when he looked at her, and her cheeks flushed slightly in response. 

In the kitchen, Maz directed them to the various bowls and platters, and they quickly filled the table. Kylo sat, and Rey took a seat next to him, across from Leia and with Han on her other side. Food started getting passed around immediately, everyone more than ready to eat. Rey dug in enthusiastically, filling her plate. Normally she’d take only as much as the pickiest eater at the table, not wanting to seem greedy or intrusive, but she had a reason today to have as much as she wanted. This was one part of being a bad guest that she’d happily indulge in. 

For a while, the only sounds were the from the silverware and china. Rey followed the table’s example, waiting to eat until everything had been passed around. Her first bite was a spiritual experience. Rich spices filled her senses. Like the night before, she had to keep herself from moaning. 

“This is fantastic,” she blurted out.

Maz smiled. “Thank you, my dear.”

She caught Kylo giving her an odd look she didn’t know how to decipher out of the corner of her eye, but decided to ignore him. Maz’s cooking alone nearly made the whole affair worth it. Still, even with the quality of everything else, she poked at the turkey hesitantly. To her surprise, it didn’t taste nearly as bad as she’d expected, and she suspected Maz’s interference had something to do with that. 

“How’s that Lando these days? He used to be over here all the time I remember,” Maz asked Han, who laughed. 

“He’s good, still stops by the shop every once in a while. Kept on the straight and narrow now that he has that family of his. Whole mess of daughters, and a handful of grandkids now. The whole bunch of them are all crammed over at his place. I stopped by and met a couple of them the other day, cutest little things.” He looked pointedly at Kylo as he finished, who just as pointedly avoided his gaze. Rey flushed and concentrated on her dinner 

Maz turned to Leia. “What about that brother of yours? Still off in the wilderness?” 

Leia sighed. “Yes, Luke’s still on sabbatical. Last I heard from him, he was heading up through Canada, but that was months ago. Every time I’m about to try to declare him missing again, he sends a postcard from somewhere in the middle of nowhere. It’s been two years now, his university is about ready to give up on him and find someone else for his position. Not that I can blame them.”

Maz hummed sympathetically. “He’ll come back when he’s ready, I’m sure,” she promised. 

“I hope so. Pain that he is, I miss him some days.” A smile flitted across her face. “Can’t guarantee I won’t throttle him when he reappears though.”

“How about your assistant? The tall one, Charles or Chester or something. I’m sure you’ve seen him recently,” Maz offered. 

Leia laughed. “I think I’d have to drop dead to get out of seeing him. He’s persistent as ever, helps keep the office running when I swear I’m going to quit for good this time. I invited him over, but he always insists it’s not ‘proper’.” She shook her head. “You’d think after all these years he’d relax a bit, but can’t deny he’s effective. Best thing for all the most annoying and tedious problems. I swear though, one of these years I’m going to show up at his house and force him to spend time together outside of work. Maybe when I’m actually ready to retire; he’d probably fall over of a heart attack. Arturo would appreciate it though.” 

“She’s not wrong,” Kylo said to Rey, leaning towards her. “I’m surprised that man made it through my childhood. I spent plenty of time in Mom’s office making all kinds of messes, nearly gave him a stroke more than once.”

Rey snorted. “You, a problem child? I can’t imagine.”

He huffed at her as he sat straight again, but smiled. 

Everyone lingered over dinner, evidently enjoying Maz’s cooking nearly as much as Rey. When Chewie and Leia eventually got up to clear the dishes, Rey stood to help, but was ushered back down by Leia.

“You’re our guest, Rey, don’t worry about it.” 

Rey sat back down awkwardly. The table was cleared quickly, with only Han left in the kitchen muttering curses over the dishwasher. The rest of the family gathered back around the table, trading stories and catching up. Rey settled back in her chair, content to listen. She felt pleasantly stuffed and surprisingly relaxed. At some point, Kylo’s arm ended up around the back of her chair again, even as he watched his family with a long-suffering grimace.

Watching them reminded Rey of a student play she’d gone to see with Finn freshman year. It’d been in a small dark room, with the few chairs for the audience positioned around the actors. Finn had loved it and had talked enthusiastically about the American Dream and the subversion and evolution of the nuclear family. She’d mostly been confused and felt awkward trying to pretend she wasn’t looking at the people across from her the whole time. Witnessing Han, Leia, Maz, and Chewie simultaneously reminisce, argue, and catch up, in a cacophony of voices, had that same feeling of looking into something private and complicated, that she didn’t fully understand, but she tried to follow along, fascinated.

The conversation was loud and chaotic, and shifted from one topic to another mid-sentence. All of them had something to say, and they’d spent so many years together that they barely needed to start saying it before the rest knew where they were going. Rey was so engrossed that she hardly noticed as the sun set outside. 

Eventually, the conversation reached a natural lull. Maz settled back in her chair and looked at the dark window. “We’d best get going soon, Leia dear. We’ll get stuck in the shopping traffic if we wait too long.”

This set off a brief conversation on how it was a shame and crime the stores couldn’t just let anyone enjoy the holiday anymore, but slowly, they got ready to leave. Maz gathered her dishes from the kitchen, leaving most of the leftovers behind, to Leia’s protest, but Maz’s insistence won. The group drifted towards the door, still chatting, even as Maz and Chewie put on their coats. 

Leia hugged Maz goodbye. “Drive safe.” Maz returned the gesture, then turned to Rey.

“You take care, my dear. Don’t let this one give you any trouble.” She jerked her head at Kylo, who sulked. “I expect to see you back for your next break, even if things don’t work out with him, yes?” 

Rey smiled, a little sadly. “We’ll see.”

“Hmmm. That will have to do for now,” Maz allowed. She pulled Rey down into a hug. “I’ll be hoping for all the best for you,” she promised. Rey swallowed.

“Thanks,” she whispered, as Maz drew back. 

“And you,” Maz said, holding out a hand to Kylo, who approached warily. “You take care of her.” Kylo glanced at Rey quickly, then back to Maz. 

“I will,” he told her. Rey didn’t know what to make of what almost sounded like sincerity in his tone. 

Maz nodded, satisfied. “And you too. Be kind to yourself, child.” Kylo blinked, but Maz pulled him down and hugged him before he could react. She said something to him quietly that Rey couldn’t catch. Kylo stood again. “Okay?” Maz asked, eyebrow raised. He nodded, wordless.

A heavy hand tapped her shoulder, and she turned only to be enveloped in a warm hug from Chewie. 

“She’s right, take care of yourself,” he grumbled. Rey hugged him back with a lump in her throat.

With a last flurry of goodbyes, Maz and Chewie left, leaving the rest of the family quiet.

“So,” Han began, rubbing his hands together. “It’s still early, and there’s four of us…”

“No,” Leia cut him off.

“You don’t even know what I was going to suggest!”

She raised her eyebrows at him. “I could guess.”

“It’ll be all in good fun. No real betting.”

“I thought you weren’t trying to scare her off?” Leia asked archly, motioning to Rey.

Han grinned. “A little friendly game of cards never hurt anyone.”

Leia snorted. “It has the way _you_ play it.”

“I’ll be on my best behavior,” he swore.

Leia pursed her lips, but relented. “Fine. But only if she wants to.”

Han turned to Rey. “So how about it? Up for a little euchre?”

“A little what?” Rey asked, completely confused.

“Euchre,” Kylo sighed heavily beside her. “It’s a card game, usually played with two pairs.”

“Okay?” she agreed tentatively.

“Excellent,” Han said. “Come on, this’ll be easiest at the table.”

They gathered in the dining room again. Kylo directed Rey to the seat across from him, while Han sat at the end, and Leia next to Kylo. Once they were settled, Han ran through the rules quickly, with Leia and Kylo cutting in to explain certain points better, or correct him on others. 

“Get it?” Han asked at the end.

“I think so,” she answered, head spinning.

“You’ll get the hang of it,” he assured her with a wave of his hand. Leia pulled a card deck and a notepad out from the sideboard and emptied the cards across the table to separate out the ones they needed. She set the rest of them aside, shuffled the deck, and dealt.

“You’re left of the dealer, so you have first choice of trump,” Leia told her, which Rey vaguely understood.

“Er, pass?” she said, looking through her cards and frowning.

“Han?” Leia asked.

“We’ll take the bet,” he said eagerly. Kylo sighed, and Rey looked up at him, certain her confusion was clear. He only shrugged and shook his head exasperatedly, with the long-suffering expression that was becoming familiar to her. She bit her lip and looked back at her cards. Leia picked up the card she’d placed on top of the pile on the table, discarded one of her own, and the game began.

She was still figuring out the details of the first round that Han and Leia had easily won when Han gathered up the cards and dealt the next round. He flipped over the top card of the pile, and Kylo narrowed his eyes at his father. 

“You cheated,” he accused.

Leia sighed. “Ben…”

“He did!” Kylo protested.

Han shrugged unapologetically. “That’s how the game goes, kid.”

Kylo leaned forward and began to say something else, but Leia gave him a pleading look. Scowling, he sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest.

It was a steep learning curve. Han played completely recklessly, taking the bet every time he could. Leia rolled her eyes but went along with it, and her strategy frequently saved her husband’s lack of cards to back his bets up with. She was the most conservative player of the family, though not by much, with Kylo betting almost as recklessly as Han, and frequently taking trump to spite his father. Rey tried to keep up, having to get over her conservative instincts quickly to match the game.

Several rounds in, she felt like she was getting the hang of it, though she and Kylo were losing badly. After Han dealt, she looked at her hand, then up at the card revealed, and back again, then over to Han, who was also eyeing it speculatively. Trying to keep Han and Leia from noticing, she kicked Kylo under the table. He looked up at her, surprised. She looked pointedly from her cards to the deck, and his eyes widened in recognition. 

“We’ll take it,” he said, pushing the revealed card to Han.

Rey glanced at Han, who was looking between the two of them suspiciously. She bit her lip, smiling.

They took that round, and the tide began to turn in their favor. Kylo had an incredibly expressive face, and she soon learned to catch the quirk of his mouth, hidden from Han, that indicated he had a good hand. She tried to indicated to him when she could help in turn, and he picked her signals up after a couple rounds. 

After they took another round of all five hands together, one Han had dealt, he threw down his last card in exasperation. “We need to build a wall between the two of you,” he grumbled. “You have to be cheating somehow.”

Rey grinned. “I thought that’s how the game went?”

The rest of the table burst out laughing

She met Kylo’s eyes from across the table. She realized suddenly she hadn’t yet seen him look so happy, and it made her heart beat faster. He smiled at her, and her grin widened in return.

“Ready for another round, old man?” he taunted, turning to Han.

Han gathered the cards and slapped them in front of Kylo dramatically. “Bring it, kid.”

Despite herself, she started yawning as the evening wore on. At first she tried to hide them behind her hand, but after a particularly huge one, Leia gathered the cards from the finished round. “I think Han and I will be conceding defeat,” she declared, pushing the score sheet forward.

“Aw, come on,” Han protested. “We could still come back from - “ He glanced at the sheet and winced. “Eleven points behind.” 

Leia snorted. “You’re not keeping them up all night just to ease your ego. They need to sleep for the drive tomorrow.”

Han sighed melodramatically. “I guess.” He stood and clapped Rey on the back. “Good job kid. Beginner’s luck, I’d say, but you get to go back and tell everyone you beat Han Solo himself.” Leia rolled her eyes. 

“Thanks,” Rey said with a grin. “But I think we could beat you any time.”

Han laughed. “Ha! You’ll have to come back and prove that then.”

Rey’s smile dropped slightly, but she forced it back up and nodded. Han wandered off. 

“Sleep well,” Leia told Rey and Kylo, before following Han to their room. 

Kylo sighed and ran his hands through his hair. “I’ll probably stay up and get some reading done for a bit, but I can stay out here if that’ll bother you,” he said to Rey.

She shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me. I might read for a little too, and I need to check-in with my roommate.” 

He nodded, then stood. They both went to his room, and Rey grabbed her things to change before leaving again. When she returned from the bathroom, she climbed onto the bed, and Kylo glanced at her from his desk.

“After last night - or this morning - “ He fumbled over his words, and cleared his throat. “I can sleep on the floor, or the couch even, it’s not a problem.”

She sighed. “I thought we resolved this last night? It’s really fine.”

“I know, but -” He cut off again.

She rolled over and looked at him. “If you’re uncomfortable, I can take the floor, no problem. It’s probably better than some places I’ve slept. But I’m not the one who started _snuggling_ in the middle of the night. Your virtue is safe from me.”

He sniffed. “You were holding onto me too. It was a mutual snuggle.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. But if you’re okay with it, I don’t mind at all.”

“Are you sure?”

“ _Yes_ , Kylo,” she said, exasperated.

“Okay,” he said, and could still hear the doubt in his voice, but he let it go and returned to his laptop.

Rolling back over on the bed, she replied to the messages Finn had left and assured him that she was fine, then idly scrolled through her phone, not quite ready to sleep yet. Her mind drifted over the day.

“Why do you even bother coming back for the holidays if you hate it so much?” she asked, looking over at Kylo.

Kylo pursed his lips. “I am fairly certain my mother would drive to my apartment herself if I didn’t show up.”

Rey smiled. She could easily imagine Leia doing that. “Maz and Chewie seemed nice,” she offered.

Kylo sighed. “Yeah.” He didn’t elaborate, and she didn’t push it. 

She was still dawdling on her phone when he closed his laptop and got ready for bed. She turned towards the wall to give him privacy, face heating, and eventually felt the bed dip behind her. She locked her phone, and with a whispered apology, leaned over him to place it on the nightstand. They lay together in the dark.

“You’re really okay with this?” he asked quietly.

She groaned. “Go to sleep, Kylo.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only one chapter to go, at least for this part! I've been considering continuing this, making it a holiday thing, if people are still interested after the last chapter, though I do have a couple more things I want to finish and get posted first. Last chapter is started and should be posted this weekend, though it is going to be shorter, just getting things wrapped up for now. As always, your comments keep me going, thank you so much!
> 
>  
> 
> [tumblr post](http://thewayofthetrashcompactor.tumblr.com/post/167879807168/look-no-further-ao3-rating-teen-and-up)


	8. Heading home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TLJ and the holidays got me distracted, but the last chapter is finally here! (Also, The Last Jedi, right??? Oh my gosh, I'm in love.) Thank you all for sticking with me!

Rey woke up the next morning in much the same position as the one before: crowded against the wall by Kylo’s massive frame. She groaned and attempted to stretch as much as she could. Next time, she’d have to be on the outside. 

She flushed when she realized she was thinking of a ‘next time’. They’d part ways after today. She didn’t know why the thought elicited a feeling of disappointment. That had been their agreement, and neither meeting his weirdly endearing family or getting to know him better had changed that. 

Instead of getting up, she let herself linger in the bed for a bit. Once she got past the shock and awkwardness of waking up surrounded by Kylo, it was actually surprisingly nice. She always ran cold and was used to waking up freezing, and his warmth was a pleasant change. For someone she’d only known for a couple days, being cuddled by him was oddly comforting. She felt slightly guilty for not waking him up or trying to get out, like she was taking advantage of him in his sleep, but she promised herself it would only be for a couple minutes more. 

She shifted, shoving him back as much as she could to give herself a little more room between her and the wall. Kylo’s arm fell around her waist as she lay on her back, with his other arm tucked under the pillow and their heads. She looked over at his face, half buried in his pillow. Sleep relaxed his features, made him look younger than he did awake. A quick pang of sympathy ran through her. She was confident what she’d told Han was true, he did work hard, likely too hard from what she’d learned.

His hair fell over his face and into his eyes, and she briefly thought of pushing it back. He grumbled in his sleep and buried his face further into the pillow. A smile flitted across her face, and then guilt pressed at her again. They weren’t actually dating. Sleeping with another person was clearly something he was even less used to than she was, and watching someone as they slept wasn’t something almost-but-not-really-strangers did. The warmth and softness of the bed was quickly sapping her desire to get up, however. Striking an agreement with herself, she faced the wall and turned her back to him again, then tried to tamp down the rush of warmth that surfaced when his arm tightened around her reflexively. 

She stared at the wall, mixed emotions washing over her, until the stress of the past couple days and the coziness of Kylo’s bed pulled her back down.

She woke up a second time with a little more room to herself. Kylo still lay next to her, and she opened her eyes to find that he was also awake, and looking down at her.

He started when he noticed she’d woken. “Sorry, I just woke up, I wasn’t watching you or anything,” he said quickly. 

She shrugged sleepily. “ ’s fine.” She stretched her arms over her head and tilted her head from side to side. “What time is it?”

He didn’t answer immediately, and she slowly looked up at him, confused. As her eyes met his, he flushed and snapped out of staring at her, rolling over to the other side of the bed. “Quarter to ten,” he mumbled. “We should probably get going soon.”

She nodded, stomach dropping, and sat up. “Did you want to shower first?”

He shook his head. “I’ll just do that tonight.”

“Okay.” Reluctantly, she slid off the bed, gathered her things, and disappeared into the bathroom.

Kylo was gone when she returned to his room, so she shoved her things into her bag and brought it out with her to the family room. Kylo and Leia sat at the counter outside of the kitchen, both nursing mugs of coffee. Leia had her laptop and was writing on a notebook next to it as she glanced back and forth from the screen. Kylo stared silently into the distance.

“Work?” Rey asked Leia as she approached.

Leia looked up and grimaced. “Unfortunately. Everyone’s trying to cram in as much as they can get away with before the winter break.” Rey nodded.

Kylo stood. “You ready to go?” he asked her, nodding to her bag.

“Oh, already?” Leia said, crestfallen.

“It’s a long drive,” Kylo pointed out.

Leia sighed. “I suppose.” She stood from her chair. “I’ll get your father.”

Han emerged with her a short while later, yawning and scratching his head. “Tryna’ give us the slip?” he asked Rey with a tired grin.

“You caught us,” Rey joked weakly. Han held out his arms widely, and Rey stepped into them. He hugged her, arms thinner under his shirt than she would have thought. He patted her shoulder as he let go.

“You have to come back, you hear? This is the best Thanksgiving we’ve had in years.”

“Han,” Leia admonished tiredly. He shrugged and stepped aside to let his wife say her goodbyes. “He’s right though,” she said, with a half-hearted smile. “Believe it or not, this has been the two of them on their best behavior.” She hugged Rey as well. Rey held her tightly, eyes pricking. “It’s been a pleasure to have you, Rey,” Leia murmured. She pulled back. “You’re welcome back here anytime, understand?” Rey nodded, throat tight. Leia gripped her shoulder, smiling reassuringly. “Take care of yourself.” She glanced over at Kylo, who stood awkwardly to the side with Han, not looking at them. “And I know you’re busy, but try to make sure he doesn’t work too hard?” Her smile turned sad. “I worry.”

“I’ll try,” Rey managed. She turned to Kylo, who was looking at his father almost with suspicion. Han had his hands shoved in his pockets and was looking at a spot on the wall just to the side of his son. He abruptly withdrew a hand and thrust it at Kylo. 

“Take care,” he said gruffly.

Kylo hesitated, then took it. “Thanks,” he mumbled. They shook hands briefly, then let go. Leia turned to Kylo. Not waiting for him to come to her, she pulled him down into a hug. After a moment, Kylo awkwardly wrapped his arms around her in return. 

“I love you,” Leia whispered, barely loud enough for Rey to hear. Kylo closed his eyes and swallowed. 

“I know,” he said finally. Then, “I love you too.” Rey looked away, feeling like she was intruding. 

Slowly, Leia released her son, and he stood back up. He looked to Rey. “Okay?” She nodded. She retrieved her bag and quickly tugged on her sweatshirt, then joined Kylo at the door. He opened it to the chilly air outside, and they walked to his car. Han and Leia stepped out as well, and waved them goodbye from the porch. Rey turned on the sidewalk and waved back. 

She and Kylo quickly tossed their bags in the car and got in, with Rey giving one last wave to the couple on the porch. Once the doors were closed, Kylo’s head thudded back against the headrest, and he sighed deeply. 

“I should really ask for that check back from you,” he said wryly, cracking his eye open to look at her.

She flushed. She didn’t think he was serious, but he wouldn’t be wrong if he was. Getting herself invited back anytime wasn’t what he’d paid her to do. “Sorry,” she said, wincing.

He hummed in response. The car fell silent. She fidgeted as she waited for him to start it up and drive them back, but he stared absently out the windshield instead.

“You wouldn’t...want to come back over winter break, would you?” he said finally. “We don’t really do Christmas, well, Dad kind of does, but Mom’s always begging me to come down for at least a day or two...” He stumbled over his words, then cut her off before she could answer. “Sorry, that’s ridiculous, you probably have your own friends and things to do - “

“No, I - “ she said over him. He looked at her in hopeful disbelief. “I mean, if it’s not too much trouble, I wouldn’t want to be a problem or anything, but...I’d be happy to come back with you,” she finished. 

“Yeah?” A smile slowly spread across his face.

“Yeah,” she replied, nodding, smiling as well. “We should - probably meet up before then though, you know, get to know each other a little better.”

“Yeah,” Kylo repeated, head bobbing, looking at her with wide eyes. “Maybe...get coffee or something before finals?”

“You do coffee?” Rey teased.

He snorted. “I’m a grad student, I think it’s actually impossible for me to not do coffee. I just don’t do Starbucks.”

She laughed. “You’ll have to show me what you do then.”

“I will,” he told her, smiling, then turned away to start the car. She bit her lip, smiling uncontrollably. 

Kylo set the car in gear and, somewhat jerkily, they pulled away from the house, with his promise filling the space between them. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story would not have been finished if it wasn't for all the feedback and support I received from you all, so thank you so, so much for that. (Leave comments for creators; it works miracles.) 
> 
> I have a couple other things I want to write, including some short fics for the [RFFA Flash Fic challenge](https://reylofanfictionanthology.tumblr.com/post/168697150683/dear-reylo-writers-old-and-new-did-you-love-the), and then I'll also be participating in the [Valentine's Exchange](https://reylofanfictionanthology.tumblr.com/post/168895515542/more-than-love-the-2018-reylo-fanfiction), but I hope to come back to this sometime! Feel free to leave things you'd like to see in the comments (though I can't guarantee I'll include all of them)! I'd also love to hear what you think; the feedback really does help keep me writing.
> 
> [tumblr](http://thewayofthetrashcompactor.tumblr.com/post/169114881568/look-no-further-ao3-rating-teen-and-up)
> 
> -
> 
> Update 6/16: I still plan to come back to this, and I'm hoping I'll have a few chapters ready for this holiday season. I apologize for not replying to comments on the last chapter yet; I usually like to do that when I'm adding a new chapter, but I think I'll be putting this one into a series, based on what I have mapped out. You can subscribe to the story if you want to see updates, and I'll post a chapter here with what comes next. Thank you again for all your amazing comments! <3


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